Laird

Charles L Laird, Chicago IL.

Special 1930 = 2pOB; 325hp Wright J-5, also J-6; span: 35'0"
length: 22'4". Built for John L Patten of Evanston IL. [NR10705] c/n
103.It seems he set up Aircraft
Engineering in Chicago 1930 after he left Wichita and built the B-2.
He also had a hand in the Greer College Bryan-Laird B-1B [516K]. (—
John M Jarratt 9/23/02)

Lake

(C J) Lake Submarine Co, Bridgeport CT.

INFORMATION NEEDED

c.1909 =
One of several classified in 1909 Jane's as an "Air Sucker,"
described only as having hollow curved surfaces, on which "heated elastic
fluid" is discharged, and that "considerable progress has now been made."
A flying submarine? Intriguing, to say the least.

Lake (aka Dan Lake)

Dan Lake, Lake City KS.

C-1 1929 = 4pCB; 150hp Hisso A. Modified 165 Swallow.
[X431N].This is a very odd one. Swallow C-165 [431N] was a
monoplane with a Wright radial. This [431N] was a biplane with a Hisso
engine. I looked deeply into the registers and found that C-165 was
registered 1929-33, while C-1 was registered 1934-36. It sounds
unbelievable, but Dan Lake must have taken over the [431N] registration
when C-165 (which he designed) was scrapped and used it for some nostalgic
Hisso biplane. Or is it really possible he used the remains of C-165 to
build this biplane? What for? Talk about recession! (— Lennart Johnsson
2/23/99)
Designed by Dan Lake, and built Oct 1929 by Swallow with a 165hp Wright as
C-165 [X431N] c/n 1, relicensed as [431N] Oct 1930. Sold to Dan Lake in
Oct 1933 by the receivers of Swallow. The company name could not be used,
so Lake used his own name and changed the model to C-1 after switching to
the 150hp Hisso. Sold May 1935 to Stanley Ball of Wichita, reg cancelled
6/1/36, and no further info was found. (— John M Jarratt 2/15/06)

Landis & Earle

Lane

Lane Automatous Air-Ship Co, San Francisco
CA.

INFORMATION
NEEDED

Helicopter 1908 = Described only as
having a single 40'x20' plane in the center of a horizontal screw 16' in
diameter. "The screw sucks air from above, compresses it, and discharges
it underneath from special cups at 250 times per minute." Jane's
reported that Lane flew this for 1.5 miles on 9/8/1908, using only hand-
and foot-power, but specs show it having a 36hp motor.

Langhurst

Langley

Dr Samuel P Langley, Washington DC.

Langley
Aerodrome Glenn Curtiss replica under construction and in flight,
1914Langley
Aerodrome Curtiss replica from old postcardsAerodrome
1903 = 1pOmwM; 53hp radial motor designed by Stephen Balzer; span: 48'5"
length: 52'5". Two tandem wings; designed for catapult launch from a
houseboat. Built at the Smithsonian Institution with a $50,000 government
grant, attempts at flight on 10/7 and 12/8/1903 (p: Charles Manly), both
failed. Notable for his early experiments with steam-driven model
aircraft, achieving flight in 1896, it wasn't until nine years after
Langley's death that his Aerodrome, replicated and modified considerably
(as contested by the Wright brothers), and powered by an 80hp Curtiss, was
successfully flown by Glenn Curtiss at Lake Keuka NY on 10/25/14.

Lanier

1908-22 - Of interest is that the elder Lanier was
also inventor of the ice cream cone, which he created while an exhibitor
at the 1898 Columbian Exposition in Chicago. Although he had a profitable
business selling cone-making machines, his real fascination was with
flight, and he is said to have built several aircraft during this period,
details of which are unknown.

443 Paraplane 1949 = Little data were found, but this was
apparently a larger reconstruction of the previous with 180hp Lycoming
O-320; v: 171/x/30. POP: 1 [N9060H] (transferred from 120 Paraplane?).
Project abandoned c.1955 after failing to attract a market.

Vacuplane 1928-33 - A series of experiments to explore Lanier's
ideas on low-speed flight. Relative US patents from 1930-33: #1,750,529,
#1,779,005, #1,803,805, #1,813,627, #1,866,214, and #1,913,809.The idea was to adopt the vacuum principle for
inherent stability, especially at stalling conditions. Low speed was
achieved by placing an upwardly-open concave cell ("vacuum cell") in the
center section of the aircraft, most often blending into the fuselage.
Slots were also involved. Hence reduced air pressure evolved in the cell
which, of course, had a positive influence on the lift. Most Vacuplanes
involved the University of Miami aeronautics department and its director,
Prof F H Given, to some degree — details are sketchy. The Vacuplane
documentation is chaos, and likely no one will ever sort it out, so the
following information on the XLs should be regarded as a mixture of facts
with some educated guesses. (— Lennart Johnsson)

XL-1 1928 = 1pOlM; Anzani; span: 8'10"(?). The wings
were spaced away from the fuselage to allow the air to flow against the
vacuum cell. [3505] c/n 1.

XL-2 1930 = 1pCmwM; 85hp LeBlond 5DF. Here the vacuum cell was
mounted as a separate box on top of the fuselage. Full-cantilever wing
with a span of at least 25', reportedly a modified Durand 13 airfoil.
Twin fins and rudders. Pilot in an enclosed cabin under the wing.
[X816Y] c/n XL-2.

XL-3 c.1931 = 1pChwM; span: 13'10" v: 90/x/25; take-off in
about 50'.

XL-4 1931 = 1pChwM; LeBlond. XL-3 modified with stabilizing
wingtip "winglets"; v: 110/x/25. The wing was mounted as a parasol on
top of a central pillar which also housed the pilot. [11512] c/n X-141.

LVF (XL-5) 1932 = 1p or 2pOmwM; 36hp Aeronca; span: 14'4"
load: 225# v: 96/80/30 range: 250. Take-off run: 90'. A number of pilots
found it stable enough not to slip or dive in a stall. In landing it had
a tendency to favor a steep descent with control maintained at minimum
forward speed. [X12865] c/n XL-5. Some data refer to it as XL-5> from
its c/n. A mysterious, Roman-numbered XL-III referred to in some
documents might be identical with this one.

Lanzius

Lanzius L II
[AS40036]L II 1919 =
1pOB; 350hp Packard 1A. POP: 2 to Air Service for evaluation [AS40034,
40036]; contracts for 2 more were assigned but not built [AS40036, 40037].

Variable Speed Aeroplane 1918 = 1pOB. Little data uncovered
about this rather modern-looking creation, but one photo shows a monocoque
fuselage and a three-quarter-span beam-type bracing on the top wing.
Likely an OX-5 or Hisso for power. Another photo in a magazine ad shows a
similar plane with a less-rounded fuselage and with that truss arrangement
duplicated on the underside of the lower wing.

Lark

1927 = 6pO/CB; 225hp Wright J-5. Fred R McConigal. 4p cabin, 2p
open cockpit; very likely a redesignation of Commercial Sunbeam.
POP: 1 [X137E] c/n 1, maybe more, but not found. Became known as a
United Lark, and is one of the snarls that has yet to be
sufficiently untangled — AAHS E-suffix register has it as a cabin
monoplane, which could be a typo.

Larson Speed
Bird [X38C]Speed Bird
C 1953 = 2pChwM; 65hp Continental C-65; span: 12'0" (chord: 3').
Modified Taylorcraft with almost no wing to speak of; flight data unknown.
[X38C].My father (Sheridan Hale) said he was at the airport
when Larson flew the Speed Bird at Buchanan Field (Concord CA). He said it
took a long time to get off, and Merle flew it around the pattern. One of
the pistons was tight and, on downwind, the engine froze. Larson tried to
stretch the glide, but didn't make it. The plane crashed, and they ran
over to get him out. The landing gears were real strong on the old
Taylorcrafts and the plane had buckled in the middle, trapping Larson in
the cabin. He said they picked up the tail, unbent it a bit, and Merle
climbed out. (— Ken Hale 7/17/00)

Lasley

(John A) Lasley Tool & Machine Co, Beloit
MI.

Lasley Sport
[N819N]Sport 1931
= 1pOB; Velie M-5, later 90hp Lambert and 65hp Continental; span: 20'0"
length: 18'0" load: 300# v: 110/100/45 range: 300 ceiling (est): 11,000'.
[N819N] is one of the original Roza creations of the early '30s,
and it was acquired by Franklin Aircraft Co, who modified it a prototype
for their Sport 90. It was purchased by Lasley c.1935. who built
and installed Peyton Autry-designed wings, then sold it to Lloyd Gabriel.
After a crash, it was rebuilt in 1953, reportedly with 125hp Continental,
then crashed to destruction in 1957 while buzzing a house.

Lawrence

1909 = 1pOB; auto engine with two 7' pusher props driven by shaft and
bevel gear; span: 44'0" length: 28'0" (possibly main chassis only). A
close copy of AEA's Silver Dart, it was listed as Lawrence III in
1909 Jane's and described as "chiefly remarkable for extreme
lateral stability."

1911 = 2pCBFb. Destroyed by a motor fire during ground tests in
Florida.

Lawrence-Lewis

Lawrence-Lewis
A-1-Lewis A-1, -2,
-4 1915 = 2pOBAm; 50hp Kirkham C-4; load: 700#+. Cockpit was enclosed
deep in a covered fuselage that looked vaguely like an early Loening
design. Made more than 150 successful flights. Advertised as a "speed
type," flying "without ailerons, wing warp, or other means of manual
control," leaving us to wonder how it was steered. POP: about 3. Basic
differences in subsequent A-2 and -4 were changes in engines
and radiators. SEE Lawrence-Lewis in
detail.

-Lewis B-1 1916 = OBAm; Hall-Scott. Advertised as a
"load-carrying type," an extension of A-1, it never went into production.

Lawson L-4
(Aerial Age via Joe Martin)L-4
Air-Line aka Midnight Air-Liner 1921 = 34p tri-motor version of
the C-2 with 124'0" span; ff: 5/8/21. Would have been the first US
airliner capable of operating at night as a sleeper, it had berths and a
white-enameled lavatory, even a shower with hot and cold water! POP: 1,
dismantled after being badly damaged on its test flight when it ran into a
tree.

Lawson MT-2
(Peter Bowers coll via Skyways)MT-2 1918 =
2pOB; 100hp Hall-Scott A4; span: 39'0" length: 25'0" v: 90/x/40; ff:
5/2/18 (p: George Puffles). POP: 1 prototype built for military tests
[2602]. An Air Service order for 100 planes was received just before the
war ended, but was cancelled. The prototype kept flying until an
inexperienced 17-year-old pilot totaled it in a crash at New Sweden ME in
1931; he was unhurt.

Pursuit 1918 - 1pOB fighter design with 180hp Hisso; never produced.

The genius of Alfred Lawson

Relatively
unknown in the annals of aviation history, Lawson might be described
as an eccentric genius, one well ahead of his time. Beside the
mentions above, some of his accomplishments worthy of note
were:(1)
Publisher of Fly magazine, 1908-09, and Aircraft,
1910-17; (2) National League baseball pitcher, 1890s; (3) invented
the lighting system for night baseball, 1901; (4) author and editor
of several aeronautics books; (5) first to devise sleeping berths,
airborne bathrooms, heated cabins, and heated rudder pedals for
open-cockpit planes; (6) first to offer passengers night flights;
(7) US patent #1,568,855 in 1925 for his passenger compartment
design; (8) proposed transatlantic flight in 1918 by placing a
string of floating airports between USA and Europe; (9) proposed a
transcontinental air route; (10) proposed an airborne post office;
and last, but certainly not the least, (11) coined the word
"Aircraft" and trademarked it in 1908, but it quickly fell into
generic use after generically appearing in Webster's Dictionary of
1912, where he worked as Aeronautics Editor. (— K O
Eckland)

Lee

Lee Aircraft Co, Napoleon OH.

L-1P-S 1930 = 1pOM; 40hp Szekely. [631W=631] c/n 4. Was the
model designation for this home-built a deliberate visual play on words,
or did L(ee)-1P(lace)-S(zekely) just work out that way on its own? A 2p
design L-2 followed (Continental A-40), but was never constructed, and
there was no found info on possible c/ns 1 through 3. The reg was amended
to [631] when its engine was changed.I now own and am in the process of restoring the only
existing Lee L-1P-S. It was built in 1930 by the Lee-Inman School of
aeronautics in Eugene OR, originally with a 37hp Szekely engine. In the
early '50s it was refitted with a C-65 by Darrel DeLong and was flown to
many early EAA events on the West Coast. Log books show that the airframe
has over 2,200 hrs since 1930. (— Jim Wolcott 1/26/05)

Leins

Leinweber

Victor H Leinweber, Chicago IL.

1921 = 1pOH; two 100hp Gnôme; rotors: 18'0". Empty wt: 1500#. An early
application of the tilt-rotor configuration. Each two lateral rotor units
consisted of a set of coaxial counter-rotating screws located at either
end of a mast. The mast pivoted to incline the rotor assemblies. The
helicopter used a compressed air system for "automatic" control, along
with a conventional rudder. It also failed to fly.

LeMars SEE Mars

LeMire

Lemp

(First name unrecorded) Lemp, Augusta GA.

B 1916 = 2pOB; Wright 4 pusher. Modified Wright B with
wheel-type control and wing-warping, Model B rudders — curiously
antiquated for the date; later with revised wingtips, trailing-edge
ailerons, and a Rausenberger V-8 motor. Used initially for training, later
for exhibition; flown until 1925, when Lemp purchased and donated it to
Chicago Museum of Science, who in turn gave it to USAF Museum.

Lewis

Lewis-American

(Paul) Lewis-American Airways Inc/Gray
Goose Airplane Co, Denver CO.

A 1935 = 2pOhwM; 210hp Lycoming. Paul Lewis. POP: 1
[14484] c/n 1.

Gray Goose (MD-1) 1930 = 2pOhwM; 165hp Wright J-6 pusher; span
30'0" length: 20'0". Fred Landgraf (seen misspelled as Langraff and
Langgraff). Deep-chord, flexible parasol wing; triple tail.
Horizontally-mounted motor in the fuselage drove two outboard,
fabric-covered propellers (also referred to as "rotating wings") via
reduction gears and shafts, turning them at 350rpm. POP: 2; the first one,
as MD-1 with 40hp Ford A [355V] c/n A-1, vibrated itself to pieces when
first cranked up. The second one [x], with a sizable increase in
horsepower, flew in 1933 to a claimed altitude of 14 inches (as recorded
on a barograph?), but overheating problems brought an abrupt end to test
flights. A connection between this and the 1936 Gray Goose entry
(qv) could not be not verified, despite some interweavings.

Gray Goose 1931 = In light of recent information, this seems to be the
"other" Gray Goose (qv) despite its Lewis-American credit
line.From an article in AAHS (Winter 1979) about Bill
McMahon, who worked with Lewis-American c.1933-35: "Bill considered it a
shady operation because its primary purpose was the selling of stock ...
although two different designs were actually built. The first of these,
the Gray Goose, never did fly ... vibrated itself to death ... then they
hired Fred Landgraf to produce a second Gray Goose." This might have been
model A, which flew one circuit of the airfield and landed when the buried
engine overheated. However, if accurate, this places Landgraf in the
picture much later than other documented references. The apparent
relationship of this and the markedly similar Gray Goose has yet to be
resolved. (— K O Eckland 8/7/01)

Liberty

1918: Liberty Airship Co (pres: D H Felton),
Muskogee OK.

Airship 1918 = Info is being sought about this exciting marvel of the
century, the "only real flying machine ever designed," capable of bringing
the Great War to a grinding halt in only one night. Read the ad before
investing your money.

Liberty Bell

Liberty Bell
[X5470] (V J Berinati coll)100-HM4a,
H-400 1928 = 3pO/CB; 180hp Wright-Hisso E; span: 30'10" (>31'0")
length: 22'10" load: c.1240# v: 135/125/40-45. Front cockpit was enclosed
into a side-by-side cabin. POP: 1 [X5470] c/n 186, or [5505(?)] or
[X7537]; H-400 was for a planned 400hp Liberty 12.This one gets more space than it really deserves, but
it is noteworthy as its episodic drama plays out and mysteries surface. In
March 1928, Mohlar showed up, a colorful con-artist representing himself
as a Captain in the Lafayette Escadrille and a chief designer with
American Eagle Co — later investigation showed he had no flying
experience, no war service, only a marginal knowledge of mechanics, and
worked for a few weeks as a junior draftsman for American Eagle. He formed
a company and produced one plane, either a direct copy of an American
Eagle, or a modification of one with factory c/n 186 — it was licensed
[5505], but abstracts for that license show a path of ownership 1928-41
through Kansas, Nebraska, and Ohio. [X7537] appears on a 1929 record
credited to North Star (and showing a Warner Scarab). The year 1929 is
notable since the company was history by the end of 1928. North Star was
on shaky footing since its formation, and it didn't help when Mohlar
cleaned out the safe in September and headed for higher ground, appearing
in October as manager of a nonexistent Chicago Aeronautical Service in
that city. Liberty Bell, then in the hands of creditors and dubbed
Spirit of St Cloud, finally got airborne on 10/15/28 (p: Lester
Coyle), only to stall on take-off and crash tail-first, ostensibly
slamming the lid on North Star. An abstract shows it as sold 10/12/28 —
three days before its first-flight date! — for $600. It must have been
rebuilt, for it was resold Nov 27 for $500, and again 1/23/29 (no price
stated), with installation of a 90hp OX-5 on July 21, finally reported to
DoC as having been dismantled 10/4/30. A conflicting letter of 4/26/30,
from a crop-duster operation to DoC, explained that the plane was
destroyed "in a cyclone last June" (1929!). All of the foregoing took
place in Minnesota, but the story is not ended. For those who haven't
dropped out of the chase by now, SEE Mohlar. (— K O
Eckland)

Lift Systems

Lift Systems Inc. Formed by Martin
Jensen and a group of Douglas engineers.

Light Aero SEE Avid

Lightning Bug

Likosiak

Cazimir Likosiak, 7508 Kenwood Ave, Chicago
IL.

1926 = 2pOB; 80hp LeRhône rotary; span: 36'0" length: 22'2". According
to a NASM abstract received by John M Jarratt, there were two unexplained
registrations for the same ship [293] and [1275]. Dismantled 9/17/28.

Lindsay

INFORMATION NEEDED

no
location.

1909 = 1pOB; no engine seen in a photo in Jane's — might have
been a glider or possibly was waiting for power to be added. Essentially a
four-wheel cart with wings and a front elevator; no specs or data
supplied.

Lindsey

Ray Lindsey, Portland OR.

Lindsey
[N4651RB] (Ron Dupas)c. 1967 = 1pOhwM.
Almost an ultralight, an original design by Lindsey "in the WW1 motif,
looking like a lot of fun." POP: 1 [N1613U].

A-7C, TA-7C 1968 = As A-7B, but with a multi-barrel 20mm
cannon. POP: 67 [156734/156800]. TA-7C was tandem 2p training
conversions of A-7B and -7C; length: 48'8". POP: 90
[156801/156890].The A-7C was not supposed to be. The "original plan"
was for the Navy to develop a two-seat TA-7C by lengthening and
upgrading the A-7B. About that same time the Navy was negotiating the
development of A-7E (as the USAF was doing with A-7D) using the
Rolls-Royce Spey engine (the Spey having more oomph than the P&W
TF30). The A-7E was to have the new AN/APQ-126 radar, improved avionics
(new HUD, improved Inertial Navigation System, great AN/ASU-99 Projected
Map Display System), new weapons control system and the six-barrel 20mm
M61-A1 "Vulcan" cannon in place of A-7B's two single-barrel guns.
Through a series of high-level misadventures, TF41 engines were way
behind the aircraft in the production cycle. The A-7E fleet introduction
had been advanced some 18 months to get it into the Viet Nam conflict
sooner. A-7E airframes (with all the electronic improvements mentioned)
were rolling off the production line with no TF41s to install. Thus some
67 aircraft had the old TF30 installed, and things got confusing. There
was period when there were two different kinds of A-7Es in the Fleet
with different cockpit configurations, engine and hydraulic instruments,
as well as different engine operating and emergency procedures. In late
'71 and into '72, the brass seemed content to have that (dangerous)
situation continue. Eventually, by late '72 or early '73, good sense
prevailed, and the TF30-powered A-7Es were designated as A-7Cs. It was
those Cs (and some Bs) that were then converted to TA-7Cs. Some TA-7Cs
were then converted to EA-7L electronic warfare/jammer aircraft used by
VAQ-33 and VAQ-34 for fleet EW training. In spite of everything the Navy
brass and higher-ups did, the A-7E went on to become a fine and
well-liked aircraft with a distinguished combat record. (— Jim
Bohannan 1/19/00)

"Who
valued life more highly, the aviators who spent it on the art they
loved, or the misers who doled it out like pennies through their
antlike days? I decided if I could fly for ten years before I was
killed in a crash, it would be a worthwhile trade for an ordinary
lifetime." — Charles Lindbergh